Madonna Wagoner of the Hamilton County Probation Department and POPAI’s 2022 “Founder’s Award” winner with her children.
On Thursday, September 8, 2022 at the Probation Officers Professional Association of Indiana (POPAI) annual fall conference, Madonna Wagoner of the Hamilton County Probation Department was awarded the “Founder’s Award”.
The “Founder’s Award” is a way of recognizing individuals who have significantly contributed to the field of probation in general and specifically to the POPAI organization. The selected person shall be characterized by his/her commitment of influence and promotion of professionalism to Indiana probation.
Gregory Werich, Chief Probation Officer of Wells County, states “I first became acquainted with Madonna in 2003 as outgoing treasurer of POPAI and turning over the financial matters to her as the incoming POPAI treasurer. Since then, we have served on probation related committees and boards. She has supported POPAI well in her position from Hamilton County. Madonna is also in a position in Hamilton County where she is blessed with resources of talent on her staff. Repeatedly, she has shared that talent with other jurisdictions in Indiana and nationally so that others may benefit. On several occasions she authorized her team members to travel to my county to provide in-service trainings at no expense to us. She has never declined an offer that I am aware of to do the same for other departments. This commitment is one that benefits professionalism of our vocation in Indiana.”
Christine Kerl, Chief Probation Officer of Marion County, states “Madonna’s impact to the field of probation has been tremendous in her decades of work within her county, the State of Indiana and the POPAI organization. Madonna exhibits the values, commitment, and dedication to the promotion of professionalism to the field of probation as evidenced by the activities and initiatives in which she takes part. She was an active participant in Indiana Supreme Court’s Committee to Study Evidenced Based Practices in Pretrial where she assisted in leading the state in its pretrial work. I was fortunate to join her on the committee and her vigor for the work was inspiring. Christine goes on to state “Madonna has provided great support and advice to me throughout the past 10 years. Her forward thinking and innovations within her county have assisted others in growing their practices. Her leadership in supporting her colleagues is evident.”
Assistant Directors of Probation Services in Hamilton County, Krista Radican and Paul McGriff, state “Madonna has been the Director for Hamilton County Probation for almost 30 years. She has navigated our department through numerous changes over the years. During these changes she has kept the best interest of our clients and the probation officers in mind. She has always encouraged us to be involved in local, state, and national initiatives. Madonna has set the standard for our department to be a leader in the field of probation and has worked hard to make that happen.”
Congratulations Madonna!